Mixed-Up
by Black and Yellow Bumble
Summary: They're both graduates, employed, have a cute little monster of their own, a huge house, and great friends, everything in their life is normal and, well, perfect. But when a child is let loose at Monsters Inc., the dynamic duo will quickly learn what it means to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Sequel to "Ambition".
1. Hired

_***IF YOU HAVE NOT READ**_ **AMBITION _PLEASE READ IT FIRST OR YOU WILL BE VERY CONFUSED*_**

* * *

The sun creeps in, forcing my eyes to open despite my need for more sleep. I haven't been sleeping very well recently, the stress from preparing to possibly be my husband's scaring assistant and keeping my band director job has been keeping me up at night. I didn't get to sleep till three this morning. I roll over and see my husband still fast asleep, his tall mahogany horns glinting in the morning light. I feel tempted to wake him up, but he isn't necessarily pleasant when being forced awake.

I sigh, pushing myself out of bed, trying to keep my claws from clicking on the wood floors. We finally decided to move into an actually house since our son is getting big enough to need his own space. I walk over to the dresser which contains a floor-length mirror and I look myself over. As I've grown over the years my dragon features have really become emphasized. The spikes on the side of my jaw are much longer, my horns at the top of my head are sharper, and more curved outward. My face has also slimmed up a big more, along with my whole body, which is good since I blew up like a balloon when I was pregnant with little John. I watch my slender tail sway behind me, the blue oddly shaped dots that sprinkle my pale yellow body are much brighter, and my golden eyes are much darker.

I turn to look at my husband as he sleeps and cross my arms. Sometimes the only time I can stand him is when he's sleeping, but I still love him just the same. His gray-ish purple fur is perfectly smoothed and conditions, his sharp lower canines are whiter than porcelain. He's definitely not hard to look at. He has changed a bit since college, his horns have gotten taller and his two bottom canines are a bit longer too, he has also grown a couple inches himself, and his chest is much larger and more defined, along with his arms. Unlike me, he ages well.

I slip out of our room, wearing my old Roar Omega Roar fraternity sweater that my husband gave me when I first was allowed to join. I ended up staying a ROR until I graduated a year ago. I have to admit, I miss it. It was kind of fun taking my husband's place as president for a couple years. It definitely changed the face of the fraternity, being run by a girl, but at least I'm a Worthington, so it kind of made sense. The frat has actually grown a lot and is even more prestigious than it was. I can't help but feel proud about that.

I smirk to myself as I walk downstairs, my claws dragging on the golden railing by the grand stairway. My husband inherited a ton of money, so of course our house is obnoxiously large.

I walk down to the kitchen and open up the fridge, scanning its contents. I spot a mango and toss it up in the air, catching it with my tail. This thing is extremely useful, much more useful than the fat sausage I had all the way up through my second semester of college.

I grab a knife and a cutting board and slice the mango up into more doable little bites, pouring myself a cup of coffee to eat with it. Coffee and fruit, strange, but it's what I like. I plop down in a seat at the large island, running my claws over the marble countertop as I open up my laptop, taking a bite of mango. I click on my drill-writing program and wait for the application to open. It's about time I start preparing for next season's show and the drill is extremely important since it's literally where every monster has to march to during the performance.

"What are you doing up so early?" I jump at the sound of my husband's suave voice talking to me from the entrance to the grand kitchen. I glance up and see him watching me, his large arms crossed over his chest, and amethyst eyes watching me.

"I couldn't sleep," I say, my eyes darting over that smirk of his. I honestly thought he would grow out of that smirk once he graduated, but boy was I wrong.

He chuckles, smoothing out his blue Monsters Inc. sweater, and fixing the collar of his white polo underneath it. "Don't tell me you're working on your band geek stuff again, Reed."

"What, summer is almost over and I haven't even begun working on the new show," I say, widening my eyes at him. "I need to order props and uniforms, and ugh."

"You really take this stuff too seriously." I watch him saunter over to me, his slender waist slightly thicker than it was in college, and his tail has also grown a bit, but not too much. He walks up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and resting his wide head on my shoulder.

"Yeah, but this is what I went to college for, Johnny." I say, giving his chin a quick rub. "I've proven I'm good at what I do my first year as head director and now I've gotta keep it consistent."

"You're such a nerd," Johnny says, giving me a kiss on the neck then shoving my head towards my computer before walking over to the coffee pot. "How do you expect to keep up with all that if you get the job to help me over at MI?"

I shrug. "I'll figure it out." Hopefully.

Johnny snorts behind me. "Good luck with that."

I hear the front door open and a familiar figure slips into the house. "Guess who?" I smile when I look up and see my best friend, Addison, as she walks into the kitchen wearing her doctor's jacket, _Dr. Addison Wilde OB/GYN_ stitched in blue lettering on her right breast pocket. "I hope you don't mind me being here so early, but I see that you're already both awake."

I nod and gesture for her to take a seat next to me. "Do you have an early appointment?"

She nods, her perfectly white fur shiny like she just washed it. "Yeah, I have a momma who thinks her hoohaa is about to fall out."

I glance over at Johnny who gives me a weird look, his phone in his hand when she says 'hoohaa'. "I guess she felt you weren't mature enough to handle vagina."

Johnny simply glares at me and goes back to checking his phone. I turn my attention back to Addison. "Why would she think that?"

"Oh, her baby just dropped that's all," She says, waving her perfectly manicured claws at me. "You remember what that was like."

"Yeah, except he fell on my bladder and my lungs simultaneously." I say, my eyes flat.

Addison laughs. "You poor thing," She looks around. "Is he still asleep?"

"Yeah," Johnny says, walking forward, clicking his phone off and setting it next to me. "I'm about to get him up though."

"Aww, let the little angel sleep." Addison says, leaning her elbows on the counter.

Johnny snorts. "He can't sleep all day, he needs to get out." He starts walking out of the kitchen. "Exercise a little."

"He's five, Johnny." I say, resting my arms in front of my laptop on the counter.

He glances back at me as he mounts the stairs. "Gotta start young, honey."

"He hasn't changed a bit since college," Addison says, giving me a playful smirk.

I nod. "I know, it's ridiculous," I turn my attention back to my laptop. "I thought that rich frat-boy act was just a phase."

Addison snorts and I see her check the silver watch on her wrist. "Crap, I gotta get going." She stands up and gives me a hug, her big green eyes kind as she backs away. "Dinner tonight possibly?"

"I'll see," I glance at the clock on my computer. "Johnny wants to take me to work to day to kind of show me how things are gonna go if I get the job."

"Alright," She turns to go then snaps back. "Are things between him and Sullivan… okay since he started working at Monsters Inc.?"

"Well, considering Johnny beat the crap out of Sulley five years ago, I'd say they're about as good as they'll get." I say, my expression flat.

She cringes. "Oh, well, hopefully they'll improve."

"They better," I say, typing a quick paragraph to a band mom about the summer schedule. "They do work on the same scare floor, and I really don't want to put up with that crap."

Once Addison leaves I watch her pull out of our circle drive in her white Mercedes-Clawz SUV, the Clawz star on the front and back illuminated by white LEDs. I turn around and look at our massive foyer. Marble floors, a huge staircase that winds up to the loft of the second floor, a crystal chandelier hanging above the center of the room. It's definitely a bit extravagant for my taste, but considering this is the lifestyle Johnny is used to living and I now can live I can't necessarily complain. It is nice being able to live like this it's just a bit more than I'm used to.

"Mommy!" I turn and see Johnny with our little Jonathan in his arms walking down the stairs. He looks just like Johnny, other than the fact he has yellow eyes and his horns are white instead of that deep mahogany color like Johnny's.

"Hey, there's my little monster," I say, holding out my arms as Johnny sets him down. He waddles over to me on his awkward toddler feet and stumbles into my arms. I gather my strength to hoist him up. "Did you sleep well?"

He nods, nuzzling my neck. "Dad said that, that I was going to grandma's today?"

"Yes you are," I say, walking back to the kitchen with him in my arms. "Mom and dad are going to work."

"I thought you don't work right now." He says, his innocent little voice so adorable. He's so smart, I know I'm biased as his mother, but he really is smart for his age.

"I don't," I say, setting him down at the dining room table. "But daddy needs my help." He gives me a sweet smile and I kiss his forehead. "What would you like for breakfast, sweetie?"

"Cereal!" He says, throwing his arms up in the air.

I laugh. "Alright my sweet honey." I poke the space between his eyes and he giggles before I walk over to the pantry, opening the door. I scan the many shelves and spot the fruit cereal.

I pour the brightly colored flakes into a small red bowl, pouring in the milk once I set down the box. I open a drawer at the island and pull out a matching red plastic spoon and mix up the cereal so it's all covered in milk.

As I set the bowl down in front of little Jonathan I hear the house phone start to ring and I jog over to where it's mounted on the wall beside the fridge. I pick the silver device up off the receiver. "Hello?" I say, moving to close the cereal box so its contents don't spoil. Johnny watches me as he munches on his own bowl of some kind of health cereal. He furrows his brow at me, I know he's asking who is and I just shrug.

"Hello, I'm Celia from Monsters Incorporated," A soft, sweet voice on the other ends says. "I need to speak to Mrs. Reed Worthington?"

"This is her," I say, putting the cereal back in the pantry.

"Oh, well I was just calling to say that after careful consideration we have decided to hire you as a part-time assistant to Mr. Worthington." Celia says, I can hear the smile in her voice. "I assume that's your… husband possibly?"

"Yes ma'am," I say, my own smile growing huge. "He is."

"Alright, well you have a great day and we look forward to having you as a part of our Monsters Incorporated family."

* * *

 ** _Dun, dun, duuuuuun! Reed works for Monsters Inc. now! Okay, so I know Johnny originally was hired by Fear Co. as determined by his scare card at the end of the movie, but I wanted him to work at Monsters Inc. so that way he and Reed could be dragged into all the fun that goes down over at MI. I will provide a further explanation as to how he was hired later on, but I just wanted to establish the mood and the characters. Ginger will be making an appearance as will Jav, and of course Mike and Sulley! I hope you guys don't mind the major time jump, but I wanted to kind of move into a more adult environment where everyone has their jobs and is graduated and all that. Also, I know med school actually takes forever to complete but I didn't want Addison to still be in school, so lets just say she's some super medical genius who managed to speed her way through med school and to her doctorate. I try to go for realism here, but sometimes it just won't work so I hope you can forgive me. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this introduction to the sequel and I will see you guys in the next chapter! Bye-bye!_**


	2. Paperwork

**_Five and a Half Years Later_**

* * *

"Dad, dad, dad, daddy."

I feel myself groan at the sound of a chorus of calls coming from the end of our bed and I roll over to punch Johnny. "Your children are awake."

"They're not mine before noon," He growls, rolling over to look at me.

I blink a couple times at him before shoving him out of bed. "Get up."

He grunts before trudging into the closet and I turn back over and am greeted by a pair of wide violet eyes. "Hi mommy," The sweet tiny voice of our daughter fills my mind and I sit up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.

"Hi there, baby," I say, pulling her up onto the bed with me. She looks almost identical to me other than a line of soft purple fur trailing down her spine and her eyes are purple, not yellow. "What are you two doing up so early?" I glance at the clock and it's ten. They usually sleep till noon.

"Brother wanted pancakes," Little Allyssa says, her eyes wide with a huge smile on her face. "So do I."

"Of course you do," My gaze shifts over to little John who is just watching me at the foot of our bed with a big grin across his face. He just turned eleven and he is definitely his father's son. I arch an eyebrow at him and he looks down, pulling back on the wooden footboard.

"They just sounded good," He says, his voice has really matured, he doesn't sound eleven.

I sigh, looking back into the closet to find Johnny wearing a white short-sleeved polo with the Monsters Inc. logo embroidered on the left breast pocket. Of course he can't forget to pop that dumb collar. "The children desire pancakes."

"Chocolate chip or strawberry?" He asks without even thinking, but then glances up to meet my cold glare. Why did he have to say that?

"Chocolate!" Allyssa says, throwing her little five-year-old arms up.

"Me too!" John says, and I roll my eyes back to Johnny who just gives me that stupid smirk that he now gives me when he knows he messed up.

"Alright, fine," I say, looking between my children and back to my husband. "But Addison is not going to be thrilled when we hand them over to her and they're both bouncing off the walls."

We all run down to the kitchen and I feel Johnny's eyes on me. I turn back and see that he's giving me 'the look'. "What?" I ask.

"I just like looking at you," He says giving the underside of my tail a quick pinch.

I smack his hand, laughing quietly. "Stop it," I watch the kids race ahead of us. "No running in the house!" I yell before looking back to Johnny. "What's on your mind?"

"Oh nothing," He says while casually pushing me up against the wall next to the stairs. "Just you and me, and an empty house once Addison leaves with the kids." He wraps one hand around my waist, propping another against the wall, his eyes locked with mine.

"You remember what happened last time we had a house to ourselves?" I say, shifting my eyes to the little mini-me bouncing around in her seat. "Got a little surprise." I give him a kiss before pushing past him and down the stairs.

"Come on, Reed," Johnny whines as he follows me down the stairs. "It's been three weeks."

We walk into the kitchen and I reach for a bag of sugar-free chocolate chips. "Tell ya what," I say, looking to Johnny and keeping my voice low. "You get the kids to eat these then I'll let you melt down the real ones to use tonight."

Johnny's eyes go wide. "Ooh," He smirks before snatching the chocolate chips from my grasp.

Johnny makes the pancakes and manages to get the kids to eat them all, though little John knew that they were sugar free, but he was smart enough to not complain about it.

Johnny leans up against the counter beside me, throwing his arm around my shoulder, whispering in my ear. "We should probably make the kids go to sleep with earplugs because that chocolate isn't going to be the only thing that's melted."

I can't help but shiver and look up at him, his smirk full of mischief. "You still have the libido of a college student."

He shrugs, kissing my cheek. "Well you still look like you did in college." He pulls me closer to him. "I'm reminiscing."

I smile and hear a car pull up in the driveway. I glance out and see that it isn't Addison's. It's a tan Roars Royce coupe and my smile grows when I see who gets out of it.

I go to answer the door and am greeted by a familiar pair of amber eyes. "Heyyyy," I say, holding my arms out.

"Hi there, Reed!" My friend, and Johnny's sister, Ginger, comes at me, hugging me tightly. "How have you been?"

I shrug. "Can't complain, the kids are getting bigger by the second."

"Aunt Gingy!" My little Allyssa's voice calls from the kitchen.

"Come here you sweet little cookie," Ginger says, crouching down so that Allyssa can waddle into her arms. She glances up and sees John watching her with a smile. "Come here," She gestures for him and he saunters over, plopping onto her. "Oh, oh my goodness you guys are so big."

She gives them another squeeze before standing up, brushing off her tan cardigan, her slender tail swaying behind her. "Where's big John?" She asks, putting her slender hands on her hips, her cat ears perked.

"Johnny!" I call," Your sister is here!"

I see his head pop out of the kitchen and he gives Ginger a smirk. "Well look what the cat dragged in."

"Oh hah, hah," Ginger says, her tone mocking. "So funny as always," She holds out her arms. "Come on, give me a hug. I know you missed me."

He walks over to her, giving her a decent hug. "Not really, but it has been rather quiet since you've been gone."

Ginger rolls her eyes. "Always at it with the jokes. You haven't changed a bit, John."

"Good," Johnny says, wiping his hands off with a white towel. "Jav with you?"

"He's out in the car," Ginger points behind her. "We just got back and he's kind of anxious to get home."

"Well he's not leaving without saying hello," Johnny says, throwing the towel over his shoulder and walking outside to the car, holding his arms out when he sees his friend sitting behind the wheel on his phone. "Javier Rios, did you really think you could get away without seeing your favorite monster?"

"You mean behind Ginger?" Jav says, glancing to me and Ginger as Johnny walks up to his car. "I'm just tired, amigo."

"Hey I know," Johnny leans in the window, giving Jav a firm handshake. "That jetlag is a killer." Johnny glances back at me. "When we got back from our honeymoon over in Hissaly Reed slept for a day and a half nonstop."

"I'm getting ready to do that," Jav says, smiling at Ginger. "But she wanted to say hi before we headed home."

"Hey, man," Johnny says, patting the bug-monster on the back of his round shell covered by a white button-up. "You gotta tell us all about it once you're rested up."

I nod in agreement and look to Ginger. "Maybe sometime this week we could all get together, including Addison and have an adults night."

"That would be so fun," Ginger says, pulling something off of her golden horns.

"Babe," Javier calls from the car. "I need sleep, honey. We can catch up later."

Ginger sighs. "He's such a baby," She gives me another hug. "See you soon."

"See ya," I say, pulling back and watching her get in the car. Johnny walks up the front steps to me, putting his arm around my waist, waving as Jav pulls the car out of the driveway and they begin down our long private drive.

As they're leaving I spot Addison's car pulling in and I walk down to greet her, pulling on my white sweater. "Hey there, girlie." I say as she gets out of the car.

"Hey there," She says, taking off her sunglasses. "Was that Jav and Ginger I just saw?"

I nod. "It was, they just got back from the islands. I told Ginger we should all get together for dinner sometime soon."

"That would be great," She says, walking up to me, putting her sunglasses in her jacket pocket. "Now where are the little munchkins?"

"Johnny," I say, looking back to him as he picks a weed from one of our flower bushes. "Can you go get the kids ready to go?"

"Yep," He says, tossing the weed into the gravel drive before sauntering inside.

"Oh, they are going to have so much fun," Addison says, beaming at me. "We are going to an amusement park and then the water park next door. It's going to be a blast."

"You sure you can handle them by yourself?" I ask, giving her a concerned look.

"Oh honey," Addison says, waving her hand. "I deal with mothers worse than these children on a daily basis. I've got this under control."

"Alright," I say, and step out of the way as the kids come running towards Addison dressed in matching red and gold polos and little backpacks.

"Hey guys!" Addison says, crouching down to hug them. "You ready to have some fun?"

"Yeaah!" They both shout and I open the door on the passenger side to help Allyssa into her car seat.

"Mommy, are you staying home?" Allyssa asks as I buckle her in.

"I am little girl," I say, giving her forehead a kiss. "But you're going to have so much fun."

She gives me a huge grin and I walk over to the other side as John gets in. "Hey little man," I say, helping him buckle up. "You take care of your sister today."

"I know mom," He says, giving me a grin. He looks more and more like his father every day.

"Okay," I say, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "You behave yourselves." They both nod and I close the door and turn to Addison. "Keep them safe."

"I will, honey." She says, giving me a hug. "Just a day of fun for them, giving you two some much needed time to yourselves." She gives me a wink before getting in behind the wheel.

I walk back up the steps and watch as she drives off down the driveway before turning to Johnny. "I know today is your day off, but I need to run to MI."

"Ugh," Johnny huffs, rolling his eyes. "Why?"

"I forgot to do some paperwork and you know how Roz gets about her paperwork." I say, gently pushing past my childish husband.

"What if Waternoose wants me to stay?" Johnny says, following me to the kitchen as I grab the keys to my own baby blue Mercedes SUV.

"He won't make you stay," I say, grabbing Johnny's phone off the charger along with mine. "That would put you at overtime. You know how businesses try to avoid paying overtime."

"I guess," Johnny says, following me up to my office. "I just don't want to risk it."

"Fine," I say, shuffling through all my sheet music lying in front of my two desktop computers. "I'll just go by myself."

"Oh ho, don't you pull that shit," Johnny says, waving a finger at me. "You know I hate you going out by yourself."

I grab my folder full of the necessary paperwork and turn to face him, giving him a smirk. "I know." I hold out my car keys for him.

He glares at them, clenching his fists before snatching them from my hand, growling. "Fine."

* * *

We pull up to the huge factory building, finding a good spot near the front before hopping out and heading to the entrance. "In and out." I say, holding my paperwork for Johnny to see.

"In and out," He growls to himself as we approach the entrance. He pushes one of the doors open and we both freeze. The lobby is swarming with CDA agents, their scanners hovering over every physical object. I glance around and see Mr. Waternoose talking with a couple agents as they hold up a duffle bag with the Monsters Inc. logo on the side. The old crab monster looks completely stressed out as the agent says they need to talk with all the scarers at the factory and I glance up to see Johnny is already glaring at me. "Just in and out, huh?"

I look around and notice Mike and Sulley skulking down a hallway, a small purple monster in Sulley's claws, but when I look closer I can see the face of a human child under the mask. "Great."

* * *

 ** _Hey guys! Sorry about yet another big time jump, but Ironelf pointed out that the events at Monsters Inc. take place ten years after MU, so I wanted to try and be a bit more accurate, and of course along the way they have a little daughter who, if you didn't catch it, was named after Reed's passed mother. I hope you can forgive me for yet another major jump, but I promise it will be the last. Anyway, thank you guys for the amazing feedback already for this fic and I send all my love to you! See you next chapter! Bye-bye!_**


	3. Boo

"I cannot believe I let you talk me into this."

"Shut up."

"We are going to get in trouble."

"We are not going to get in trouble, we just got here." I snarl at my husband as we creep down the hallway where Mike and Sulley were last seen. We've been trying to find them because something tells me that they are the reason the factory is in an uproar, crawling with CDA agents.

I glance back at Johnny whose eyes keep darting nervously around the darkened hallway. "I don't like this."

"Quit whining," I hiss, we approach the men's locker room and I peek inside. I can hear voices, but I can't really place who they belong to. "Hey," I growl, gesturing for Johnny to get his butt over here. "See whose in there." I say, pointing to the locker room.

"Why me?" He asks, genuinely confused.

I just point up to the men's room sign and he slaps his hand to his face before trudging forward. "Right, right," I watch him open the door and walk in as casually as he can and I feel myself grow nervous when I see that he is no longer in sight. I stand there in silence for another minute or so when I hear the sound of Johnny screaming in fear. "Reed! GET IN HERE!"

I shove into the locker room and round the corner and see Johnny frozen, his arm extended and pointing to something. I follow his finger and freeze myself when I see a small human child in a purple monster costume standing at the entrance to the bathrooms. I cock my head at the strange little creature. I've never actually seen a human up close she's about the size of little Allyssa. The small human looks at Johnny and smiles, her little pigtails bouncing as she waddles over to him, giggling.

Johnny looks to almost turn white as the human approaches him and he steps behind me. "Don't you come any closer," He says, trying to keep his voice tough. The child just ignores him, as children tend to do and she gets even closer and before I have time to stop him he bares his sharp teeth and lets out a menacing snarl at the little girl. I sigh, popping him in the side of the head. "You idiot," I hiss.

"What?" He snaps, rubbing where I smacked him, giving me a fiery glare.

Before I can answer the small child begins sobbing, screaming and sobbing and I shoot a glare right back at Johnny. "You don't roar at a child before you know its fears," I snap. "You should know this!"

"It was going to TOUCH ME." Johnny snarls right back, flinching when a light bulb busts due to the child's screaming.

I just roll my eyes and crouch down to look the little girl in the eye, her face swollen and wet as she continues to cry. "Hey, hey, hey," I coo, trying to keep myself from looking scary. I reach out to the little girl and she steps away, trying to hide her face with her fake tentacle arms. "It's okay," I say, reaching out for her again. "Just ignore him," I glance back at Johnny and he has his arms crossed and looks ready to throw the kid through a wall. "He knows not what he does." I see Johnny drop his arms and huff, rolling his eyes.

The little girl quiets down, her eyes looking me over. "Dragon," She says, pointing at my nose.

I nod, smiling. "I am a dragon."

She looks back at Johnny and sticks her tongue out at him. "Bad puppy," She says in a little toddler voice.

I laugh, "Apparently you look like a puppy to her."

"I'm not a puppy," Johnny says, walking around to crouch beside me, glaring at the little girl. "Puppies are not scary."

I roll my eyes, turning my attention back to the little girl. "Do you have a name?"

"Boo!" She says, throwing her arms up.

I exchange a strange glance with Johnny. "Boo, that's not a normal human name."

"It's actually just a nickname," Johnny and I both jump when we hear Sulley behind us. I turn to look at the big blue behemoth and see that he has his arms crossed. He's clearly gained some weight since college, but it looks good on him. "How did you two find her?"

"We followed you," I say, standing up, moving out of the way of Boo as she runs to Sulley.

"Kitty!" She says excitedly, jumping into his arms.

"Kitty," Johnny snorts. "It calls you kitty?"

"She," Sulley says, giving Johnny a hard glare. "She calls me kitty."

"Okay," My husband rolls his eyes. "How did she get here?"

"That's what we are trying to figure out," I glance down and see Mike standing beside Sulley, his eye watching Johnny carefully. "I think it was Randall."

"Boggs?" Johnny says, giving me a surprised look. "Why do you say that?"

"I caught him trying to cheat last night," Sulley says, bouncing Boo in his arms. "That's when I found her, I tried to put her back but then Randall showed up and she followed me."

I watch as the child tries to reach for Johnny's horns and he just steps away, flashing his teeth at her. "How are you holding her?" He asks, smoothing out his shirt.

"It isn't toxic," Mike says. "A bit of a home-wrecker," He says, glaring at the child. "But not dangerous."

"Really," I say, looking at the little girl.

I reach out to touch her hair when Johnny grabs my wrist, pulling it back. "How do we know we can trust you?" Johnny says, his eyes narrowed and darting between Mike and Sulley.

"Would I really be holding her if she was dangerous?" Sulley says, arching a bushy eyebrow at Johnny.

"I guess not," Johnny says, letting go of my wrist. "You really need to get her back. The factory is crawling with CDA."

Sulley opens his mouth to respond but then stops, putting his arm around all of us and dragging us to an empty stall. I listen and hear Randall's voice talking with his scare assistant. All four of us clamber on top of the toilet and I feel Johnny wrap his arm around me, pulling me tightly to him. I look up at him and he is staring out through the crack of the stall, his brow furrowed, teeth slightly bared. He's extremely protective of me, and it's really showing right now.

I look around to Mike, Sulley, and Boo and my heart stops when Mike's foot accidentally slips, a muffled squeaking sound echoes through the bathroom. I notice that Randall's feet had disappeared and Johnny now has a iron grip on me. I jump at the sound of the bathroom doors being slammed open one by one, drawing closer by the second. I swallow hard when I hear the door open next to us. I hear a small growl rumble in Johnny's throat as he tenses up at the sound of the little lizard outside our bathroom.

Randall suddenly stops and I can hear his assistant mumbling something about a child and then I clearly hear him say. "When I find who let the kid out," He pauses, "They're dead!" The door suddenly swings open with a bang and I feel my heart in my throat as it slowly closes on the two of them. I then hear Randall begin to yell and swat at his assistant as they leave.

I look to Johnny once it's quiet and his grip on me relaxes a bit. "That was cl-" I'm cut off by the sound of Mike falling into the toilet. Followed by a little 'Eww' from Boo.

* * *

Johnny and I follow Mike and Sulley out of the locker room and into the hallway. I look left and right to make sure no one is around. "What are we going to do?" I say, keeping my voice low.

"We've gotta get its door back," Mike says, clicking his claws against his teeth. "But how, we don't even know its name." I notice Mike isn't referring to her as 'Boo'. Maybe he's trying to not get close to her.

"We could always look up her picture in the database." I say, looking to Johnny who nods.

"No, no, no," Mike says, holding his hands up. "There are millions of children in our database, there is no way we have the time to look through all those images."

"Why not just ask Roz for the key Randall was using?" Sulley says, shrugging, Boo still tightly in his arms.

Mike seems hesitant about that. "We could," He says slowly, glancing down the hall that leads to our scare floor. "Or maybe pretty boy over here could do it." He says looking to Johnny, who gives Mike a cold glare. "What, you could use that charming smirk of yours to woo her into giving you the key."

Johnny crosses his arms, glaring down at Mike. "There is no way I am flirting with that old slug."

"Maybe Reed could do i-" Mike is cut off by Johnny growling at him, "Or maybe Reed could not." He sighs, dragging his hands over his face. "Fine, fine, I'll do it."

We all watch from the hallway as Mike saunters over to Roz's window and Johnny leans over to whisper in my ear. "Ten bucks says he doesn't get it."

"Only ten?" I say, giving him a weird look.

"Fine, a hundred." Johnny relents. "Two hundred says she closes the window on him."

I give him a firm handshake. "You're on."

"I'll be back," Sulley says, walking away from us with Boo in his arms.

Johnny watches as Sulley leaves then glances to me, giving me a smirk. "Wanna go to one of the broom closets?"

I elbow his side. "No, Jesus."

"I was just joking," Johnny says, chuckling to himself. "Mostly."

I roll my eyes and watch Mike approach the window. Roz doesn't look happy to see him, though she never looks happy to see anyone. Shit, that reminds me. I have my own paperwork to turn in. I shake my head and turn my attention back to Mike as he tries to lean suavely against the countertop, using his little beach ball charm on the emotionless slug.

"Moment of truth," Johnny says, shifting on his feet, his eyes focused on the little green ball. "Get ready to pay up, baby girl."

"I think he will get it." I say, narrowing my eyes as Mike continues to talk to Roz, who is beginning to look irritated. "Though I've been wrong before." I say and I can see Johnny's grin growing out of the corner of my eye.

I watch in stunned silence as I see Roz reach up to close her window in Mike's face, but as she slams it down I notice that his hands are in the way and I cringe when I hear him yell out in immense pain.

"Oh ho, shit," Johnny says excitedly, pumping his fist. "She even smashed his fingers!" He begins to laugh hysterically, holding his stomach. "Oh my God," He holds out his hand. "Pay up, sweetheart."

I begin to feel around my shirt and shrug. "Oh shoot, seems I've left my wallet in the car."

Johnny pulls me close, his mouth right beside my ear. "Don't worry," He says, his voice a low purr. "You can pay me tonight."

I narrow my eyes at him and he winks. "You are a real piece of work." I say, and as Johnny continues to chuckle to himself, I glance back to Mike who is still struggling to get his hands out from under the window cover.

* * *

 ** _Whoop! Another chapter out of the bag! I'm really liking this new adult perspective I'm giving these two. It's definitely a lot of fun to write. I appreciate all your wonderful feedback, it is really encouraging and keeps me writing! Anyway, what lies ahead for our little odd couple? We shall see in the next chapter! But until then, bye-bye!_**


	4. Caught

"What are they doing?" Johnny asks me as we stand at the entrance to our scare floor, staring ahead.

I cock my head to the side as Mike and Sulley appear to be doing some kind of odd dance in front of a door, Boo hidden behind Sulley. "I have no idea."

"Is that even the right door?" Johnny says, pointing to the rustic looking door mounted at the station.

"I highly doubt it," I say, turning around to walk the other way. "We should try to not look conspicuous."

"Hard to do that when it's our day off." Johnny says with a huff as he follows me down the hall. "Look," He says, stepping in front of me. "Why don't we just turn in your paperwork and go home?"

"We can't," I say, crossing my arms. "We are in too deep now. We've gotta see this through with those two."

My husband rolls his eyes, rubbing the space between him. Man, that look takes me back to when we first met. He has so much attitude for a scarer. "We are not obligated to them," He says, trying to keep his voice low. "We aren't even friends."

"Yeah," I say. "Do you ever wonder why that is?" I look Johnny up and down, arching an eyebrow.

He snorts. "I am not the problem here." He says, smirking.

"Not anymore no," I say, stepping closer to him. "But you didn't exactly get off to a good start with these two."

"That was ten years ago," He says, genuinely exasperated. "That's a long time for a couple monsters to hold a grudge."

I start walking down the corridor, not even looking back to see if he's following, but I can hear his feet jogging behind me. "You constantly put them down, told them they weren't good enough," I stop, snapping around to glare at him. "You publicly humiliated them." Johnny looks surprised and angry that I'm calling him out on this, but we've had this discussion before. " They have every right to be mad at you." I pause, looking down at the ground. "You know, if it wasn't for the fact you constantly put him down, Mike probably wouldn't have broken into that door lab and they wouldn't have been expelled."

"Sullivan was the one who cheated," Johnny snaps, gesturing back to the scare floor. "He would've been kicked out anyway! It was his cheating that probably provoked Mike."

"Yeah, but your bullying was no help!" I growl, getting in his face. I don't know why I'm getting so mad about this now, but for some reason it's bothering me.

"But what if I was nice?" Johnny hisses, narrowing his eyes at me. "You probably would've never given me a second glance and I would've never pushed you to go on that date with me." His eyes soften, he almost looks hurt and I suddenly feel guilty. "Being a jerk brought me to you, but I'm trying to be better now, okay." He leans against the wall, crossing his arms and glaring at the floor. "I just really don't feel like going to jail." He looks to me. "I'm a dad, and I really don't want to screw up like mine did."

I walk over to him, grabbing his arm and putting it around me. "We won't go to jail, and you will not screw up." I look up at Johnny and see he is watching me with those sharp amethyst eyes. "If you want to do better, then why not help them? It's a good start."

He clenches his jaw and I can hear a small growl in the back of his throat. He's considering it. "Alright," He hisses, looking up, his horns catching the florescent light. "Fine," He gives me a kiss on the top of my head. "You are such a pain in the ass."

I laugh, elbowing him in the side. "But I'm your pain in the ass." I look down and realize something. "Oh shit," I say, looking up to Johnny. "I lost my paperwork."

* * *

"Where did you last have it?" Johnny asks me as we meander down the halls where we first came in. I keep my eyes on the ground, but I feel myself panicking. I can't forget my paperwork, Johnny won't get any scares if I don't turn those papers in.

I shrug. "I don't know," I grab the sides of my head. "I was distracted by all the chaos. They could be anywhere." I feel myself begin to breathe heavier and I hold my hand over my chest. I've recently been diagnosed with anxiety and so high-pressure situations don't bode well with me.

"Hey, hey," Johnny kneels down in front of me, placing his hands on my shoulders. "Calm down. Breathe," I hold my hand up to my mouth and cup it so it starts to regulate my air. "You didn't take your medicine did you?"

I shake my head and he steps away from me, giving me space to breathe, but he keeps his eyes level with mine. "Look at me," I do and I see him giving me that once in a blue moon genuine smile and I feel myself begin to relax. "We will find the folder, okay? We will find it. Don't worry."

I take a shaky deep breath, breathing out slowly. "Okay," I say quietly, my breathing beginning to even out. "Okay."

Johnny stands up, straightening out his shirt. "Let's just retrace our steps."

I nod, following him to the front door and I can't help but have the feeling that we are being watched. I glance around the dark hallway, my eyes adjusting to see down the poorly lit corridor. "Johnny," I say quietly, watching as something begins to shift on the empty walls. "John-"

* * *

I am suddenly thrown out of a small box into a chair and when my eyes adjust I see Randall and his assistant standing in front of me. "What the hell?" I growl, glaring at my slithery coworker. "What are you doing?"

"Oh Reed," Randall says, shaking his head as if he is remorseful of something. "I was really hoping you wouldn't get mixed up in all of this." He says as he slinks forward, grabbing my wrists. "You and I were pretty good friends in college. I helped you study, you helped me gain my confidence back after being kicked out of your husband's precious fraternity." He growls, locking my wrists into cuffs attached to the seat. My eyes dart around the room and it's definitely not a room I've ever seen, but I have a feeling it's still in the factory due to all the piping and the sound of heavy machinery filling the steamy air.

"What are you doing?" I ask, looking at the machine in front of me. It's long and intimidating, hanging from the ceiling like a giant metal arm and I see a whole cart-full of scream cans attached to it. "What is that thing?"

Randall places a gentle hand on the silver metal. "This, dear Reed, is the Scream Extractor." He says, his eyes all squinted at me in a permanent sneer. "With this bad boy we won't need scarers like Sullivan," He steps forward, jabbing his finger at my chest. "Or your oh-so perfect Johnny." He steps back, giving me a toothy grin. "And you, Mrs. Worthington," He seems to spit out that name as if to try and attack me with it. "Are the lucky first subject."

I watch as he steps behind a control panel with all kinds of wires snaking off of it and over the concrete floor, his assistant looks nervous. I can hear him chattering to Randall, adjusting his glasses over his three eyes. "Are you sure you want to do this on her?" He says, his tiny red body shaking. "Her father-in-law is on the board!" He says in a hushed shout. "Not to mention her husband could rip us limb-from-limb!"

"That Worthington is not going to find us," Randall growls, pushing a couple buttons on the board and I start to panic again as the machine approaches me, a loud sucking sound coming from the small opening. I try to curl my lips into my mouth, biting down hard to keep the machine from sucking them in, but I can feel my teeth sinking into my skin and the salty taste of blood fills my mouth.

I glance up and see Randall watching me, his eyes darting all over me and two of his four hands are twiddling in anticipation. "Come on, Reed," He says in a mockingly sweet voice. "With your husband out of work you two will have more time to focus on those precious little monsters of yours." He walks towards me, the suction from the machine growing stronger. "Wouldn't you like that?"

I feel my eyes begin to water and I start to try and pull myself out of the restraints, ignoring the searing pain in my lips as I bite down harder to keep the machine from opening my mouth. I feel the blood begin to trickle down my face in steady streams and close my eyes, waiting for the machine to be right on me.

"Reed!" My eyes snap open at the sound of Johnny's voice roaring through the room and he smacks the little red monsters away from the control panel and into the wall. He tries to get up and Johnny bares his teeth in a furious snarl as he turns the machine off.

I relax a little as the machine creeps away and I release my grip on my lips, crying out in pain from my teeth cutting them open. I watch as Johnny stalks towards Randall who looks ready to run the opposite way. He really has no idea what he is in for. "Look, Johnny, pal," He says, trying to be as charming as he possibly can. "Can't we just talk about thi-" He's cut off by Johnny grabbing his skinny little neck and slamming him against the wall.

"Listen here you little garden snake," He growls. "If I ever see you come anywhere near my wife again, I will turn you into a nice leather belt." He gets right in Randall's face, his sharp teeth bared and glinting from the light. "Do you understand me?"

Randall nods as he tries to gasp for air as Johnny appears to slowly crush his windpipe. "Good," Johnny says darkly, dropping Randall to the ground. "Get the hell out of here."

I watch Randall scamper off, leaving his assistant dazed and confused as he tries to follow him out of their little lair. I look over to Johnny and I can't seem to find any words to say to him mainly because my mouth is in extreme pain from me biting my lips. I simply pull on the restraints and Johnny grabs them and breaks them open, picking me up out of the chair. "Are you okay?" He wipes the blood off my face, looking closely at my torn up mouth.

I shrug. "I guess," I cringe as my lips move and hold my hands over my mouth.

"Come on," Johnny says, hoisting me up into his arms. "We need to get you to a doctor."

* * *

Johnny drives me to the emergency room at the Monstropolis Grace Hospital just a few blocks from the factory. We walk inside and he saunters up to the front desk, leaning on it as he talks to the young monster behind the counter.

I sit down on a nearby couch, glancing around to the few other monsters waiting their turn to be treated. Knowing Johnny's connections I'm probably going to get to skip the line. I did when I went into pre-term labor with Allyssa, but Addison was also my doctor, so that helped too. I glance up and notice a very young but beautiful monster sitting with what looks like her mother and I see that her belly is large and round. I can't help but think about how young my mom was when she had me, if she looked embarrassed like that to be at the hospital with her mom.

"Babe," I glance up and see Johnny standing over me. "Come on, they're going to get you all fixed up."

I nod and stand up, glancing back at the young mother and feel myself longing to be sitting in the emergency room with my mom by my side.

* * *

 ** _Weeeew, yet another chapter down! What's going to happen next since Reed and Johnny are not there to warn Mike and Sulley about the machine? Well, if you've seen the movie you know exactly what's going to happen, but no spoilers! What's going to happen to Reed at the hospital? Who knows? Well, me actually, but I'm not going to tell you, so please be patient! Anyway, thank you all for your continued support and sweet comments they really continue to make my day! I love you all and I will see you in the next chapter! Bye-Bye!_**


	5. Lily

I stare down at my body draped in white, the beeping of the heart monitor next to me is all I can hear. I glance over to Johnny who is leaning against the bed, thumbing through his phone while we wait for the doctor. The nurse was able to stitch up my mouth, said it would best to eat soft foods for the next few days as my lips will be very tender but she found something unusual on my abdomen when giving me a mandatory physical exam, so she went to find a doctor.

I glance back to Johnny and he is still entranced on whatever it is he is watching on that little screen. The soft white light reflecting off his perfectly conditioned fur. He is always such a stickler about keeping his fur smooth and shiny. It's rather amusing watching him get ready in the morning.

I continue to watch him and his eyes eventually dart to me and when he sees me looking at him he turns the phone screen off and sets in on the bed, turning his body to face me. "You alright?" He says, furrowing his brow.

I nod, not opening my mouth because my lips sting too much. I glance around and notice a small notepad on the small nightstand next to the bed. I reach to grab it, but notice there isn't a pen or pencil. I turn back to Johnny and make a writing gesture with my hand against the paper. He narrows his eyes then snaps his fingers. "Oh! A pen, uhh," He spins around, his amethyst eyes scanning the room before locking onto a pen that's attached to a clipboard at the foot of the bed. He walks over to it, pulling it off and handing it to me.

I take the pin, giving him a small smile despite it being extremely painful before jotting down "Water" onto the notepad, holding it up for Johnny to read. He looks it over and smiles. "I'll be right back." He says, giving my hand a squeeze before opening the door and walking out of the room.

I slowly set the notepad aside and stare ahead at the wood-paneled walls. I breathe out deeply, wishing I wasn't in this damn hospital and that my mouth didn't have to be pieced back together like a puzzle, and now there might be something else wrong with me. I sigh, throwing my head back, glowering up at the ceiling. I begin to think back to when I was still in high school, completely unaware of what college would actually bring for me.

* * *

 ** _Flashback_**

* * *

"Hey, Reed!"

I snap my head back, my eyes train on my friend as she bounds towards me, her soft black fur reflecting the afternoon sun. "Oh," I say, coming to a halt on the sidewalk as I watch my friend scamper towards me. "Hey, Lily. What's up?"

The dog-like monster stops in front of me. Her aquamarine eyes bright as she gives me a fang-infested smile. "Did you get Mr. Lewis for math?" She asks, her three tails swaying behind her as she grips her textbooks with her three arms. She did have four, but when her and her family were in a horrible car accident she lost one.

I nod. "I did, for sixth hour though, right after lunch."

"Damn," She says, twisting her long snout in disappointment. "I got him fourth hour. I was wondering why I didn't see you."

"Yeah," I say, turning to continue walking down the street, gesturing for Lily to follow. "Least we still have band."

She gives me a grin. "That's a good point." She pauses, fixing her loosely fitted white jacket as she follows me. "Are you taking Spanish this year?"

"I am, but online," I say, giving her a sideways glance, trying to keep my attention on her and the monsters walking towards me. "I didn't want to deal with an actual teacher."

Lily laughs it's a very bright and happy sound. "I can understand that." She gives me a nudge before winking. "Meet any cute guys?"

I roll my eyes, swatting a leaf off of my cinnamon bun-like horns. "I'm not here to meet guys." I say. "Maybe by my senior year, but not right now." I continue to walk forward, gripping my new books in my arms. "I just need to get through my first year as a high-schooler without any crap."

"Alright, alright," Lily says, her voice says she isn't done pestering me about the subject. "But you're a cute lady, Little Reed," She gives me a friendly nudge to the side. "I'm sure you're bound to find someone."

I laugh, giving my friend a genuine smile. She's actually a junior, where as I am a freshman, but she is a little behind and I'm a little ahead. That kind of explains why we have the same level math class.

We walk by one of the most high-class, expensive restaurants in all of Monstropolis and Lily punches my shoulder. "Dude," She says, pointing to a shiny cream-colored Roars Royce sedan. Perfectly polished, the chrome glinting beautifully in the sunlight. "Holy shit," She says, walking around the gorgeous car. A car that never in our wildest dreams we could afford. "This is a three-hundred-thousand-dollar car!" She crouches to try and peak into its windows, but they are so well tinted it's impossible to see anything.

I walk around the vehicle, clutching my books tight to my chest. I am in awe of this beautiful car. I peer closely at the paint and notice little flecks of silver and gold as the light hits them. "Wow," I say, wanting to reach out and touch the mobile piece of art, but hesitating because I don't want to upset its owner.

"Can you imagine having the kind of money that allows you to own cars like this?" Lily says, joining me at my side. "I mean, you could blow three-hundred grand on a car just like that." She sighs. "I couldn't even afford the headlights off this thing."

I nod, but remain silent, stepping back to put some safe distance between myself and the angel on wheels. I lean against the railing that's keeping the landscaping of the restaurant in, setting my books down beside me, watching Lily as she fixes her long, black hair into a bun using the Roars Royce's windows as a mirror. "Hey, now I can say I've been in contact with the one percent." She says, stepping back, leaning on the rail next to me once her hair is situated. "Maybe if I find the owners I can touch their jacket or something and some of their riches will be blessed upon me."

I laugh. "I don't think that's how it works."

"It should be," She says, moving a stray strand of hair behind her perked ears. "They have the money, they should share it."

I shrug. "I suppose."

"Don't be such a downer," Lily teases. "Lighten up a little." She then gives me a hard pat on the shoulder that I wasn't expecting and I stumble forward, smacking right into the car, my horns barely missing the glass of the windows.

"Oh shit," Lily gasps behind me and I stare in horror as the alarm starts to go off, the sound loud and piercing in my ears.

I don't have time to act before I feel Lily yank me away from the car, dragging me down the street as the alarm continues to echo through the city.

* * *

 ** _End of Flashback_**

* * *

I look down from the ceiling and see Johnny standing beside the bed, a glass bottle with a white cap in his hands. "I figured you didn't want the nasty hospital water." He says, twisting the cap off and pouring the water into a cup for me. "Did you doze off or something?" He hands me the water and I sip slowly. "When I came in you were just staring at the ceiling."

I give him a so-so hand gesture and he smirks. "It's weird not hearing you talk, though," He says, giving me a wink. "I do like not having to constantly hear your smartass mouth."

I smack Johnny across the face with the pillow resting on my stomach and he laughs, leaning forward to kiss my forehead. "I still love you."

I glare at him and he just smirks. God, even to this day that dumb smirk still gets to me. I just roll my eyes and notice the doctor has come in. He walks over to the bed, giving me and Johnny a nice smile. "Hi there, I'm Dr. Shepherd," He says, giving Johnny and I a charming smile as he creeps over to us, his lizard-like form almost similar to Randall's, minus the constant sneering and his scales are gold, not purple. "I was just coming to tell you that the lump on your stomach is just scar tissue." He glances to me. "It happens a lot when babies develop their horns in the womb, but it's nothing serious, simply cosmetic." He flips through my chart, sauntering towards me, using a light to gently inspect my stitches. "Well, it looks like Jackie got you all fixed up. That's good." He writes something down on one of the papers. "Try to stay away from any sharp foods like chips or really anything crunchy for the next ten days. Don't want to risk opening those back up." He gives me a kind smile before looking to Johnny. "I have her discharge work all filled out, you guys are free to go." He starts to write more down on the chart. "I'm sending in a prescription for some painkillers and you should come back in ten days to have those stitches removed." He starts towards the door, before turning back, that smile still plastered to his face. "Just leave your gown on the edge of the bed."

* * *

I'm wheeled out to the front of the hospital in a wheelchair by Jackie, the nurse who stitched me up, I still have that little notebook and pen in my hands as I wait for Johnny to bring the car around.

I watch as he pulls up in his black Roars Royce. He must've taken my car home so that he could drive his favorite toy. I shake my head, smiling. Jackie helps me to the car, her smile genuine and I can see how impressed she is by Johnny's car as she opens the door and it opens backwards. "You get better now, hun," She says as I climb into the car. "No more biting through your lips." She scolds playfully and I give her a soft smile as she closes the door.

"So," Johnny looks irritated as he pulls out of the hospital parking lot. "Do you still want to help Mike and Sulley?"

I hold up a finger, jotting something down on my notepad. I can feel his eyes darting from me to the road constantly as I write. "What are you writing?" He finally asks, I can hear the impatience in his voice so I try to write a little faster.

We come to a stoplight and I hold up the notepad. Written on it is "I do still want to help them, but I want to visit a friend first."

Johnny gives me a confused look as he drives down the highway. "What friend?"

I take my time, writing the four familiar letters, a lump beginning to develop in my throat as I rip the note off the pad and stick it to his steering wheel.

Johnny looks at the note and turns to me, furrowing his brow in confusion. "Who's Lily?"

* * *

 ** _Well there you have it guys! Getting a little into Reed's backstory a bit. Lily is actually a real life friend of mine and she kind of inspired the character. I love her to pieces and she's turning 22 in a few days. Gah, she's so old. Lol. Anyway, I hope you liked the little flashback I did. I've been reading Ironelf's story, Craze, and it's set back when Ginger and Johnny were still in high school so it's inspired me to delve deeper into when Reed was younger. You guys should really check out Craze, it's really good! I enjoy it so much! It's definitely a nice read and easy to follow. Also, sorry about the couple days of silence, I've been busy with life so I hope you can forgive me. Anyway, thank you guys for all your love and support and your sweet reviews! They mean the world to me! Thank you! And until next chapter! Bye-bye!_**


	6. Shot

"Turn left up here," I write down on a note, sticking it to Johnny's steering wheel. He looks at me, his brow furrowed. I nod, I know what he is asking, but I don't want to explain just yet.

I listen to the ticking of the blinker as he turns down a dirt road. I watch the trees fly by as Johnny slows down, trying to keep the rocks from flying up and scratching his car's paint. I lean against my window, staring up at the sky growing dark with clouds. I scribble on a new note, sticking on top all of the previous ones on the steering wheel. I watch him read it and his expression begins to grow concerned. I just give him a soft smile and he keeps driving, his grip on the wheel tightening.

We pull into the destination, driving under a cast iron archway down a single-lane dirt road. The car slows to a stop and I let myself out, not waiting for Johnny as I walk through the clearing. I take a deep breath as I see the round shape mounted underneath a tree begin to develop before me. I reach the polished black stone monument and kneel down in front of it, my eyes beginning to water. "Hey," I say to the tombstone. "I know it's been a while but life has been kind of hectic." I shrug, ignoring the stinging in my lips as I talk. "But I guess it's okay." I look behind me and see Johnny weaving in and out between the variety of monuments and tombstones sprawled across the clearing. "I have a husband now." I say, letting out a small laugh. "Can you believe it? Me…" I look down at the freshly cut grass, pulling at it nervously. "Little loner Reed… married."

"Babe," I hear Johnny's quiet voice behind me and I give him a sideways glance as he crouches down beside me. "Why are we here? I thought we were going to see your friend."

I nod towards the tombstone, pointing at the name. Lillian Jewel Jones. I glance back to Johnny and he looks like he's seen a ghost. "Your friend…" He pauses, inching closer to me. "She's… " He looks down, stopping himself from saying it.

I nod. "Why do you think I never mentioned her?" I say, glancing at her beautiful tombstone that I had put in myself. "She was like my sister."

"What happened?" Johnny asks I feel him place a gentle hand on my shoulder.

I take a deep breath. "She was killed." I say quietly, adjusting one of the vases on each side of the monument. "She had a bad habit of breaking into the houses of the wealthier families. But she was very careful about it, she would always make sure the homeowners weren't armed or they didn't have guard animals etcetera." I let out a breathy laugh. "It was actually pretty ingenious how she went about it. She probably could've been a detective." I clear my throat, feeling it begin to swell up. "Anyway, it was my freshman year in high school, her junior, and she was going on her normal heist and I had decided to join her. She always did it on Friday nights because most families weren't home." I feel the tears begin to flow. "She went to the wrong house." I take a shaky breath. "She was working on opening a window and… the homeowner heard her." I look away from Johnny. "He came out and without hesitation," I throw my hand over my mouth, trying to calm myself. "He shot her." I clench my jaw the tears streaming freely down my face. "She was pronounced dead at the scene. The homeowner wasn't prosecuted because she was trespassing, and her family couldn't afford to sue a billionaire." I close my eyes, feeling myself get angry. "Do you know whose house it was, Johnny?"

The silence that follows my question is the loudest I've ever heard. "…no."

I look back to him, my pupils nothing but black slits and my eyes spilling with tears. "It was your house."

* * *

 ** _*Flashback*_**

* * *

"Lily are you sure we should be here?" I ask, glancing down at the detailed floor plan of the house Lily made. "It doesn't appear to match what you drew out." I say, glancing up at the huge mansion before us. My friend a few feet in front of me, her blue eyes cutting through the dark night like daggers as she scans the grounds.

"It's right," She glances back at me. "You know I can't be entirely exact with those things."

I shrug, looking over the drawing once more. "I suppose."

"Shh!" She suddenly hisses her black ears perked at the sound of a window opening. She slinks back into the bushes with me, her ears following a couple black figures as they creep to a car that I can't really see. I feel my heart in my throat as bright headlights suddenly blaze in our direction. I drop down with Lily as the car begins to drive past us and down the driveway.

Lily keeps her ears perked, her tails swaying impatiently as she waits for the noise to die down. "Okay," She finally says after what feels like an hour. "Let's go."

I watch her dart from the bushes towards the house. I glance around before following her, the blueprints in my black shoulder bag, secured tightly at my side. I keep my footing light as we cross the gravel drive, moving slowly just in case they have flood lights. I feel my pupils dilate in the dark so I can see more clearly. No lights are on in the house, but I catch a glimpse of movement on the second floor. I quickly scan around for Lily and see her on all fours, inspecting the best way to get in.

I look back up to where I saw movement and everything is suddenly still. I feel myself begin to tense up. I really don't like this. I dart behind a tree in the middle of the circle drive, but keep my eye on Lily as she approaches a lower set window. She stands up, running her claws between the seal of the window and the frame. She glances back at me, giving me a thumbs up before returning her attention back to the window. It's my job to make sure that the coast is clear so I continue to scan the area. I spot a lineup of high-end cars and roll my eyes. Rich monsters are so pretentious. I bet not having to worry about money is nice though.

My ears suddenly pick up the sound of a door opening. My eyes shoot to the front door when all the lights around the house suddenly pop on. I am blinded by the light, collapsing behind the tree, rubbing my eyes as they burn from the light.

I finally gain my focus and have enough time to peer around the tree as the monster pulls the trigger. The shot ringing out through my head.

* * *

 ** _*End Flashback*_**

* * *

"What?" Johnny says, his face genuinely surprised. "That's not possible."

I relax my gaze. "I didn't think it was either." I sigh, looking away from him. "I recently pulled her case file out. I was just wanting to clear my office of all the clutter and found it shoved in the back of the shelf." I twist my mouth, it hurts but I can't help it. "It had the address of the house." I pause, rubbing the back of my neck. "It was your parents' address."

I watch as Johnny looks ready to collapse. "I heard about that shooting," He says, his voice low. "But I didn't realize… "

"It's not your fault," I say, glaring at the ground. "And I'll try to forgive your father, but it's hard to accept that I married into the family that killed my best friend."

"He wasn't even charged?" Johnny asks, his voice clearly annoyed.

I nod. "She was trespassing on private property," I pause, trying not to scream. "All your dad had to say was that he felt like he was in danger because that apparently justifies murder."

"You were there?" He asks, his eyes locking on mine.

"I was," I say, feeling my heart flutter at those amethyst eyes. His father may have shot my friend, but Johnny had nothing to do it. He wasn't even home that night. "We saw two monsters sneaking out that night." I give him a half smile. "Could that have been you and Ginger?"

"It's completely possible," He says, smiling. "It was a Friday night."

I laugh, leaning against his shoulder, looking back to the tombstone. "Lily, this is my husband." I say, gesturing to Johnny. "He's a bit of an idiot, but he's my idiot. I think you would like him." I say feeling my tears coming back. "He's the best thing that has ever happened to me, Lily. I wish you could be here to actually meet him." I cover my mouth with my hand. "I'm rich now," I pause, swallowing my sob. "I could've taken care of you Lil." I can't stop the sobbing now. "I could've given you the life you deserved." I hold my face in my hands, tears cascading down my face, my breathing strained and horrid.

"Shhhh," Johnny coos in my ear as he gently rubs my arms. "It's okay, it's okay."

"She had never even slept in a bed by herself." I say, looking up at him. "She was sharing a one bedroom apartment with her parents and three siblings." I stare down at the ground. "I could've given her everything she deserved. Everything. She could've had her own bed!" I cry.

"Hey, hey, hey," Johnny says, wrapping his arms around me, gently rocking me back and forth. "There was nothing you could've done." He says, kissing my head. "If I had been home I would've stopped him." I can hear the anger beginning to grow in his voice. "If only I had been home…" I hear a growl rumble in his throat. "I wish you would've told me about this sooner."

I try my best to calm down. "I've tried to block it out of my mind." I say, my voice growing hoarse. "I only want to remember her life…" I trail off, glancing back at her headstone. "Not her death."

* * *

 ** _Hey guys! Sorry this chapter was kind of short… and depressing. I've just been really busy with my life. I move back to school in three weeks and I've been flooded with hours at work. I promise to get back to the Monsters Inc. story but I've been wanting to expand a little on Reed's life. My actual friend Lily is still alive and well, she actually just turned twenty-two and her family is also super rich so this isn't all that parallel with my life. Anyway, thank you guys for the patience and the sweet reviews! Keep them coming! I love you all so much! Until the next chapter bye-bye!_**


	7. Pranked

I watch the trees whir by as Johnny drives down the road, the tires of his car kicking up dust behind us. I watch as a black figure races beside us along the tree line and I glance over to Johnny, who is staring ahead, his eyes glassy. I turn back to see the figure running towards us and I struggle to keep my expression flat as it jumps out in front of the car.

"Oh SHIT!" Johnny shouts, slamming on the brakes and causing the car to swerve off the road and into the grass. His hands have a deadly grip on the wheel as he stares ahead, breathing heavy. He looks over to me, reaching to rub my back. "Are you okay?"

I look up at him, nodding and see that the black figure is now at his window, staring him down with piercing blue eyes. A claw reaches up to tap the glass. Johnny snaps around and without warning swings the door open, knocking the figure to the ground. "Who the hell are you?" He snarls, standing over the monster, his fists clenched and teeth bared.

I quickly pull up on the emergency brake when I feel the car begin to roll back before leaping out the door of the driver's side, standing in front of Johnny. "Woah, woah, woah," I say, holding my hands out to him. "Calm down."

"This guy could've gotten us killed!" Johnny shouts, shoving past me towards the black mass of fur.

"Hey, hey," The new monster yelps to me. "Reed, control your man!"

Johnny suddenly stops, whirring around to look at me. "Wait," He glances back to the black monster. "You know her?" He asks, pointing back to me.

"Of course I do," She says, "That little lizard there is my best friend."

I walk over to Johnny, gently grabbing his arm, trying to not burst into laughter at his puzzled expression. "Johnny, this is Lily."

He glares down at me, rubbing between his eyes. "You told me she was dead?" He tries to keep his voice low, but isn't doing a good job. "You said my dad shot her. You took me to her tombstone."

"It was a pretty elaborate prank," Lily says, crossing two of her arms and putting the third on her hip. "Though your dad really did shoot at me," She points to a scar on her side. "Just barely grazed me though."

Johnny's jaw drops. "You…" He points to me. "You are one amazing actress."

I give him a grin, ignoring the stinging in my lips. "Yeah, it took us weeks to come up with this." I say, looking at the ground. "Though we did have a little help from your beloved sister." I shrug. "It was actually her idea."

Johnny shakes his finger at Lily, glaring at the ground. "I'm going to kill that cat." He growls. "So, you two had this planned for weeks?"

I nod. "I ran into her up at the school, she was registering her son for school."

Lily walks up to me, her wolf-like snout graced with a smile. "Mhmm," She throws an arm around me. "After I graduated I split, traveled the world with the money I had saved. Then I got pregnant with little Ryan and now that he's old enough for school I decided it's time to come home." She gives me a smirk. "I didn't even recognize her at first, especially with that big-ass ring on her finger." She looks at Johnny and snickers. "The Reed I knew in high school hated the idea of marriage, but you must've changed her mind." She lets go of me and approaches Johnny, her icy eyes darting up and down his form. "I'm surprised she married you." She says, smirking at him, her fangs barely visible. "You do not seem like her type at all, all buff and god-like." She glances back at me, giving me a wink. "She always hated those uppity, jock types."

I roll my eyes ignoring the daggers that Johnny is giving me now. "Trust me, I didn't like him when I first met him." I glance up at my husband and see that his eyes are narrowed and his jaw is clenched as he watches Lily pace around him, the sunlight catching on his tall horns. "I could barely stomach that snobby senior."

* * *

 ** _*Flashback*_**

* * *

The library is quiet as I flip through my _Introduction to Scaring_ textbook, jotting down the occasional note in my journal. I glance up at all the monsters around me, some gathered in small study groups, others tossing paper wads to their sleeping peers across the room. I snort when I watch a group of guys throw a wad at their napping friend, the paper ball landing right in his open mouth. I roll my eyes, turning my attention back to my book. I turn the page and notice a strange shadow suddenly break the sunlight coming in from the large skylight of the library. I glance up at the shadow as it stretches across the table and I feel myself become visibly annoyed when I see who it is. "Go away," I hiss quietly.

I growl when I hear the chair next to me quietly scrape across the floor and the owner of the shadow sits next to me, leaning against the table. I sigh. "That doesn't look like going away to me."

"You don't mean that, freshman." Johnny says, his voice a soft whisper. I glance over to him and give him an icy glare. He throws up his hands, leaning back in the chair. "No need to be hostile, shrimp."

I look the senior up and down as he pulls something off his ROR sweater then fixing his yellow collar. "What do you want?"

"Well," His amethyst eyes look me up and down. "I really shouldn't say." He winks at me and I resist the urge to smack him upside the head with my textbook.

I arch an eyebrow at him and he snorts. "Just thought I would say hi." He leans forward, resting his elbows on the table. "You looked a little lonely."

"I'm fine," I retort, looking back to my book. "But thanks for the concern."

I see him watching me out of the corner of my eye and I feel myself growing impatient. "Seriously, do you need something?"

That dumb smirk of his wavers for a second at my hostility but then he glances down at the work surrounding me. "Would you like some help?"

I look up at him and see that he is serious. I glance over to my homework packet that I set aside earlier. "Well," I start, wanting to punch myself in the face for even considering it. "I guess it wouldn't hurt."

"Great," Johnny says, reaching over me to grab the packet. He lays it out in front of him before snatching the pen from my hand. "Let's see," He flips through the pages and stops on a question that I skipped. "This one stump you?"

I nod, watching him tap my pen against one of his lower tusks. It's definitely different seeing him acting serious about something. I continue to watch him as he works the problem out, and he actually isn't paying much attention to me, and I feel my eyes begin to kind of wander. I glance up at those mahogany horns as they shine in the light and move down to his thick arms, subtle muscle definition showing through the sweater.

I lean my elbow against the table, resting my chin on my fist as I watch him write on my paper. He isn't even showing me how to do it he's just doing it. I notice his eyes glance in my direction and I quickly turn my gaze to the desk lamp across from us. I see him look back down at the paper and when I return my gaze to him he's smirking as he's writing. "See something you like, freshman?" He says, not looking up from the paper.

I feel my face get hot and I look away, using my hands to cover the red of my cheeks. I hear him stand up and step over to me, slapping the packet down in front of me. I look at what he had written and ignore that he is now standing over me, his face just inches from mine. I notice how he set one hand on the table on one side of me, and the other hand on the opposite side like he's trying to subtly pin me down. I feel his chest pressing against my back as he points to the paper. "Alright," He starts, his face right next to mine. Our cheeks are almost touching. "When doing a jump and growl scare it's really important to take not only your weight into account, but the weight of the bed." He continues to explain to me how to work out the problem and I find myself just watching him, but not listening. It's just so refreshing seeing him being helpful and not totally obnoxious.

After a few more minutes I notice he is looking at me. "You got it?" He asks, I just blink. He reaches up to snap his fingers in my face. "Hello, earth to freshman."

I shake my head and feel myself begin to blush. "Yeah," I say, trying to keep my face from ramming into his. He arches an eyebrow at me, his smirk growing. "I got it."

* * *

 ** _*End of flashback*_**

* * *

"Well, I'm happy you found someone little Reed," Lily says, snapping me out of my thoughts. "I wish I could've been at your wedding, though." She looks down, her ears flattening.

"Hey," I say, giving her a tight squeeze. "You're here now and that's all that matters."

She gives me a smile and glances up at Johnny. "I still can't get over that you married him." She says, pointing a thumb back to my still seething husband. "I mean, not saying it as a bad thing, just that I never expected you would end up with a guy like him." She looks back at Johnny, who slowly crosses his arms over his chest, before glancing back to me, lowering her voice. "Is he as good in bed as he looks like he should be?"

I giggle, punching her in the shoulder before whispering back. "Even better than he looks."

"I need details!" Lily gasps and I slap my hand over her mouth.

"Later," I chuckle, giving Johnny a wink. "Right now we really need to be getting back to work." I see Johnny curl his lips in a snarl and I silence him with a glare. "We need to help our friends with a problem."

Lily looks around, her face pondering. "Could I maybe assist?"

"Woah," Johnny steps forward throwing his arms out. "There are already too many monsters involved in this mess. Look what happened to Reed's mouth because of it." He gestures to my stitched lips and Lily looks them over.

"What happened?" She says, running a gentle claw over them.

I shrug. "Long story, but it's not a big deal." I walk over to Johnny grabbing his hands. "Mike and Sulley need all the help they can get." I look up at him and he is avoiding my gaze. "Please, honey?"

I continue to stare him down as he clenches his jaw, trying to look everywhere but me. He closes his eyes, gritting his teeth. "Alright, fine," He says before opening his eyes and pointing at my friend, who looks up at him, her three tails swaying behind her. "You can come," He says and as she begins to walk to the car Johnny calls out to her. "But no more jumping out in front of monsters' cars!"

Lily turns back to give Johnny a sarcastic salute before climbing into the back seat. I start to the car but am yanked back as Johnny pulls me up to his face, his eyes both mischievous and hostile. "And don't you think you're going to get away with this shit you just pulled on me." He gives me a playful growl and I return an innocent smile before sauntering over to the car.

* * *

 ** _And there you have it! Surprise, it really was just an elaborate prank. You're welcome. I honestly had planned to do that so I wanted to hurry to get this chapter out before too many people lost their minds. Now that Lily is in the mix what kind of mayhem will this group cause over at the factory, and what fate befalls Ginger after helping Reed and Lily scheme the ultimate prank on Johnny? Well, only time will tell! I hope you guys are still enjoying! I love all the wonderful feedback and thank you for your continued support! Much love to you all and until the next chapter bye-bye!_**


	8. Accidents

**_*Flashback*_**

* * *

My eyes flutter open and I look to see that I've once again fallen asleep at the library. I yawn, slowly stretching out my arms as I sit up. I glance around the area and see a few monsters sitting quietly amongst themselves, their eyes glued to the small print of their textbooks. My eyes draw down to the contents in front of me and I see that I drooled all over my _Scare Theory_ textbook. "Nasty," I hiss to myself, using the sleeve of my blue sweater to try and wipe the pages dry.

After a few minutes I notice more monsters beginning to flood in as the day begins and I spot the RORs meandering about between the shelves, Johnny breaking off from the group to scan a nearby bookshelf. I can't help but watch him as he hovers his claws over the books, his violet eyes intense as he tries to find whatever it is he is looking for. My eyes begin to trail up his perfectly polished horns and back down to his white, sharpened canines, then to the letters of his sweater and I have to shake my head to keep myself from going further and I force myself to look away. "Ugh, Reed," I growl to myself as I frantically gather my things and throw them into my bag. "Stop it."

I push myself out of the chair, throwing my bag over my shoulder and making my way to the entrance of the library, hoping that Johnny doesn't see me. I look back and see that his back is to me as he leafs through a textbook he pulled from the shelf and I take the opportunity to dart to the door and out into the open air.

* * *

 ** _Three Years Later_**

* * *

I feel myself nodding off as I continue to mull over the same sentence of my _Advanced Scaring Techniques_ textbook over and over, my jaw resting on my palm as I dig a claw into the pages, puncturing the book. "Jesus," I growl, slamming the book shut and glaring up at the green desk lamp as it glows softly in the dark library. I glance down at my watch. It's three in the morning. I sigh, dragging my claws down over my face. "Kill me," I hiss, slamming my face down onto the table.

"I don't like the sound of that." I can't help but smile at the sound of his voice and I glance up to see my relatively new husband smirking at me from across the table. "How is it that I can always find you here?" He says, giving me a tooth-filled grin as he walks towards my table.

I shrug. "I guess I'm a bookworm."

"Egghead," Johnny teases, his broad shoulders bouncing as he laughs. "You know, I would like to see you at home every now and again." I watch him take a seat beside me, I notice he is wearing his old ROR sweater and polo.

I feel the guilt begin to wash over me. "I know," I sigh. "I'm sorry… these finals are just eating away at my soul."

"I know," Johnny says, leaning forward to look me in the eye, his expression serious for once. "But you have a husband and a son who miss you."

"It's not like I enjoy being away from you," I say, refusing to look at him as I pick at my wedding ring around my finger. "I'm just trying to graduate on time."

I feel a large arm wrapping around my waist. "Reed, you're doing great. You won't graduate late. I mean, at this rate you will probably be graduating early." I feel a claw under my chin as he uses his hand to turn my head to look at him. "You're never home." I swallow hard when I see how genuinely sad Johnny looks. "You need to come home more than just a couple nights a week."

I sigh once more. "I know…" I look away from him. "I'm sorry." I glance to his sweater. "Why are you wearing that?"

His eyes dart down to his chest and he smirks. "I was hoping if you saw me wearing this it would make you miss me." He chuckles. "I know you secretly love me in this getup." He winks and I punch his shoulder.

"You don't look bad in it." I say, looking him up and down. I feel a wave of nostalgia wash over me. "It feels like freshman year all over again. I come to the library hoping to escape you and yet somehow, you still find me."

"You say you came here to escape me, but if you really wanted to hide from me you would've tried a lot harder." Johnny says, leaning closer to me, his eyes narrowed in mischief.

I shrug. "I'll admit, after a while I was hoping you would find me."

"Oh, I know." He says, giving me another wink before giving me a light kiss on the lips. "Especially after that one day."

* * *

 ** _Three Years Earlier_**

* * *

The shelves upon shelves of books seem even more endless now that I actually have to try and find something without Mike's assistance. I feel my eyes moving so quickly between all the various titles that I'm almost getting a slight headache from it, but I persist. I really need this book if I'm going to pass the final.

I scale a ladder and hover over the upper shelves where my stubby little legs just can't reach, but I don't see the book anywhere. "Dammit," I growl, sliding down the ladder in a huff. "Where is that stupid book?"

My ears suddenly catch onto the sound of heavy footsteps approaching me from behind and I snap my head around to see Johnny sauntering towards me with his usual swagger. "I really do not have time for you today." I growl.

"Well it's good to see you too, freshman." Johnny retorts, crossing his arms as he stops in front of me. "You look like you need some help." He says, giving me a wide smirk.

"How is it that you always manage to find me here?" I snap, completely ignoring what he just said.

"You don't make it very hard not to." He says, relaxing his arms. "So what are you looking for?"

I roll my eyes before turning my back to him. "I'm looking for a Scare Reference book."

"Those are checked out almost constantly." Johnny says, walking up to the shelf. "But I'm sure someone might've looked over one somewhere." He pauses then without speaking rounds the corner and I quickly follow him. I look and see he has climbed the ladder and is reading the spines of each of the books, his gaze very scrutinizing.

I walk over to the base of the ladder and watch him as he pulls out a book, holding it out for me to see. "Bingo, baby." He says, his smirk full force.

I roll my eyes but I can't help but smile at him. I step back as he comes down the ladder and I step forward not anticipating him to turn so quickly and I find my lips against his and I jump back, slapping my hands over my mouth. I watch Johnny as he stares at me, his expression blank as he blinks a couple times. "Uhh," He says, holding the book out to me. "Here you go."

I hesitate before stepping towards him, taking the book from his claws. "Thanks," I say, glancing him over. I can't help but notice that it looks like he is blushing. "Sorry about that."

"No, no," He says, rubbing the back of his neck, his gaze drifting to the ground, his voice almost nervous. "It's alright. D- don't worry about it." He twists his jaw as he glances back to the bookshelf he just climbed down from. "Let's just not- let's just pretend that didn't-" He pauses, glancing over to me before looking away again. "That didn't happen."

I nod. "Nope."

"Good," He says quickly. He forces his smirk back on his face. "See ya later, freshman." I watch as he walks away and just as he rounds the corner I see him slap his hands to his face in clear frustration before he disappears from view.

* * *

 ** _*End of Flashback*_**

* * *

"So you're telling me your first kiss was actually an accident?" Lily's amused voice fills my head and I glance over to Johnny and he looks embarrassed.

I turn to look at her in the backseat. "That's what he says. Part of me thinks he did it on purpose." I glance at Johnny and he gives me a quiet growl. I laugh, "He's stubborn."

"I can see that," Lily's tails sway behind her as she watches Johnny drive. "I'm surprised you can handle it. But you've always been hard-headed yourself, so maybe you guys like," She holds her hands out to make a balancing gesture. "Even things out."

I smile, looking out the window as the traffic of the freeway flies by. "I would say so." I glance back to Johnny and as he continues to drive, his eyes focused on the road, one hand on the wheel, elbow of his free arm against the door as he rests his head on his fist. I occasionally notice him glance over to me as he drives. It's been ten years and I still feel the same way I felt the day I actually admitted I had feelings for him to myself. I think he knows it too because whenever he glances at me and sees me looking at him and gives me a small smirk.

"Wow," I glance back and see that Lily was watching me, her eyes wide. "I've never seen you look at someone like that before."

I feel my face get hot as Johnny chuckles to himself. "Yeah," I say. "Love does that."

"I'm jealous, Reed," She says, leaning back in the leather seat, crossing her arms. "I hope to find someone I can look at like that." She glances down then smiles. "Though I do have my baby, Ryan."

"You'll find someone, Lil." I say, glancing out the window and seeing the familiar form of the factory growing in the distance. "And based on my experience it will be someone you never even expected."

I look back at Lily and she is looking between me and Johnny. "Like you two?"

I look up at my husband and he gives me a soft smile and I nod. "Yeah, like us."

I hear the soft clicking of the blinker as Johnny turns the car onto the next road. We are nearing the factory. Hopefully things are better because I really don't know if I can handle any more stress. But they are our friends and they need our help. So hopefully we can actually do something to help better the situation. I sigh, looking out the window as we drive between the various apartment complexes that line the streets. I notice some kids playing jump rope with a little green monster's tongue. I laugh, I can honestly say I've never seen that before. Whatever works I guess.

I glance back over to Johnny who is rubbing the base of his horns in clear frustration as we draw closer to the factory. I reach over and grab his hand from his head. "It'll be okay," I say quietly. "They need us."

He glances to me and nods. "I know." He takes a deep breath, breathing out slowly as we pull into the factory parking lot.

We come to a stop and I see the militia of CDA agent vehicles and notice one speeding towards us. "Oh God," I watch in horror as it draws closer to us and Johnny and Lily have barely enough time to look over and see the armored vehicle as it collides right into the driver's side.

* * *

 ** _Wheeew, that is some intense ending, huh? I'm really sorry for the horrible update time. It's nearing that time of the year where I go back up to school and I've been really really busy so I apologize. I will go ahead and tell you guys that no one dies, I would not do that to you. Also, the flashbacks are because I want to kind of delve deeper not only into Reed's past but her and Johnny's relationship, so I hope you guys don't mind those! They will go with the story, I promise! So anyway, thank you guys for your continued support and amazing patience! I have not abandoned you and I will not, I will see this fic to the very end. I promise! So until the next chapter, bye-bye!_**


	9. Crash

**_Johnny's POV *Flashback*_**

* * *

I lead my band of brothers towards the library, we all happened to get out of our classes around the same time so we are just trying to kill time before the hell of the first day passes. I step towards the door, checking my reflection in the glass, giving my gold collar a quick pop, smoothing out my ROR sweater before reaching for the brass door handle.

After everyone is inside I close the door behind me and glance around the library as we meander around the huge area.

"Johnny," Chet's raspy whisper catches my attention and I give the little crab a sideways glance as he continues. "Why not just go back to the house? Why the library?"

I shrug, whispering back to him. "I dunno, I just felt like coming here." I shove past Javier who gives me a playful punch to the shoulder with one of his four arms. I give that four-eyed bug the middle finger before continuing towards a bookshelf. I guess I could use this time to try and find the books I need for my classes. I reach one of the many shelves and begin scanning the spines for any titles I feel might be useful, though nothing jumps out at me. I tap one of my lower tusks thoughtfully as my fraternity brothers gossip behind me like a bunch of school girls.

"Aye, Johnny," Javier's Spanish voice snaps me out of my search and I turn to face him standing next to me, my jaw twisted slightly in annoyance. "Check out what the freshman heap dragged in."

I follow his claws pointing across the huge open hall to a small white monstress, a long elegant tail curled against her back as she crosses the creaky wood floor with a quick gait. She is definitely hot for a freshman. I feel a smirk begin to grow across my face as I watch her full figure sway as she walks. I lean against the bookshelf and glance at Jav. "Nice find there, bud." I hear him snicker menacingly next to me as I continue to eye-fuck the little freshman as she weaves through the various shelves. The little tuft of fur around her neck looks so soft.

I notice her tall ears suddenly perk up and her short snout turns towards a table where a large pile of books covers whoever she is looking at. I watch her glance around before scurrying over to the table and when she reaches behind the books I notice a head pop-up, wide golden eyes staring at the white freshman in surprise. I shift my feet to try and get a better look at who it is behind the books and I quickly find myself frozen at what I see. A small reptilian monster with white swirled horns that almost look like little cinnamon rolls stuck to the side of her head. Her eyes large and sharp, though very friendly. I twist my jaw as she moves away from the table and I notice her wide hips and narrow chest, giving her a really gorgeous figure. A blue sweater hugging her curves in the most appetizing way. "Oh boy," I nudge Jav as he leafs through a book and when he looks up to me I point at the little freshman. "Check that out."

"Oh ho, amigo," Jav murmurs, his voice full of mischief. "Looks like our white beauty has a friend."

"Yep," I watch the little lizard's plump tail sway behind her as she talks to her friend and I feel a tingling sensation throughout my body. "She's mine."

"Really?" Jav says, getting closer to me so the others don't hear him. "I thought you didn't date freshmen?"

I cross my arms, smirking. "I'm about to make an exception." I continue to watch her and can't help but feel something else in my chest as a large smile crosses her face. I notice her gaze drift to me and I don't look away. I lock my eyes with hers, giving her my most charming smirk. She just continues to stare, but I think I see a small smile trying to creep its way across her face. "I'm going to make her mine."

* * *

 ** _*End of Flashback*_**

* * *

The rush of the impact causes me to automatically reach over to Reed's seat, my arm shielding her small form from the harsh impact of the airbags and my claws digging into her shoulder, keeping her from flying out the window. It's almost as if time slows down as I feel a sharp pain in my side and my arms and the another second passes by when the car flips back over on its wheels. I let the smoke clear before mustering all my strength to force my door open then running over to Reed's side, ignoring Lily as she collapses out of the back seat unscathed. "Baby!" I shout, grabbing the door handle, locking my elbow pulling as hard as I can, ripping the door off of its hinges. "Babe!" I try to keep from panicking as I cup her face in my hands, her eyes glassy but looking right back at me. "Say something." I say, trying to keep my voice calm.

"I think you're going to need a new car," She chuckles, wiping at the blood on her forehead from where a shard of glass cut her.

I let out a nervous laugh before reaching in and gently pulling her out, helping her to her feet. I glance over her body and only a few cuts and bruises seem to be present. I feel myself begin to relax but I notice her eyes watching me. "Honey," She says, her voice soft as she reaches for my side. I glance down and see a long slash down my side from where the metal of the car caught me. I reach to touch at it and see that it only cut through the first few layers of skin.

I grab Reed's hand and pull her close. "It's okay. We're okay."

"Holy shit, guys!" Lily's voice screaming causes me to growl and I glare over to the black ball of fur as she sprints over to us. "Are you okay?" She glances back to my trashed car and the completely unharmed CDA van before snapping her eyes back to Reed and I. "What in the hell was that?!"

I ignore her, letting go of Reed and walking past them towards the van. I clench my fists, ready to deck whoever plops out of that vehicle. I storm up to the driver's side, swinging the door open, my teeth bared and ready to snarl but a lump catches in my throat when I see that the cab is completely empty. "What?" I mumble, my eyes darting around the seats, hoping to catch a glimpse of a CDA agent cowering behind the seats, but I see nothing. I furrow my brow, but when I glance down to the shift I notice it is in neutral and the emergency brake is off. Probably some new guy forgot to shift the damn thing all the way to park. I growl low in my chest, glowering down at the empty driver's seat, but something catches my eye and I lean closer. "You have got to be fucking kidding me."

* * *

"We need to go." I say, briskly walking towards Reed and Lily as they look each other over for wounds. "We have to go now!" I snarl.

"What?" Reed looks at me with wide eyes. "We don't have a car."

I walk up to them, wrapping my arms around the two, shoving them towards the front doors of the factory. "Move quickly."

"Johnny, wha-"

"Just move," I hiss, cutting my wife off as we cross the parking lot. "Trust me." I glance back to the van and I notice a purple snake slither from the driver's side, his eyes watching us as we shove through the entrance.

* * *

 ** _Hey guys! I'm so so so sorry about taking forever to update. And I'm sorry for the severe shortness of this chapter, but I've been busy with moving back up to my college so yeah. I'll try to update as soon as I can. I probably will later tonight. I appreciate the continued support. It means the world to me! I love you all so very much. You guys stay awesome, I'll see you in the next chapter bye-bye!_**


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